There I was, standing in my galley kitchen with a fussy one year old on one hip and a wooden spoon in the opposite hand stirring some beautifully softened onions and celery in butter.

All of a sudden, there I was, standing in my galley kitchen with an over turned bowl of bread cubes, dried cranberries, and pecans on my hideous floor.

Does this story sound a little familiar?

Don’t worry, I didn’t make the same mistake twice. I’m simply leading you into one of our newest favorite recipes.

Buffalo Chicken Chili!

Of course, I had to share the amusing event with my mom. Along with a plea for what to do with half of that pan of onions and celery. She suggested chili and I immediately thought buffalo. Buffalo wings and celery are like partners in crime!

I’ve since made this recipe twice in less than two weeks, we loved it that much! My husband says its his favorite chili that I’ve made.

To play off of the buffalo wings & ranch/bleu cheese pair, I bought some sour cream & onion potato chips for garnishing the chili as I require a crunch with my chilies. (Usually tortilla chips or oyster crackers depending.) If you need to tone down some heat, swirl in a little bit of ranch dressing or sprinkle on some bleu cheese. If you want extra heat, shake some hot sauce onto your bowl of chili.

Buffalo Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 tbsp butter
• 3 ribs celery, diced
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• 2 C chicken broth
• 1/4 C buffalo sauce

Steps:

1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook ground chicken completely. Remove from the pan and set aside.
2. In the same pan, add the butter. Saute the onions and celery, season with S+P. Cook until tender.
3. Add the beans, onion powder, garlic powder, and parlsey. Stir in the chicken broth, and buffalo sauce. Return the cooked chicken to the pot.
4. Partially cover, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook 50 – 60 minutes, stirring occasionally.